How to be Organized :: Student Edition | Tidy Thursday

Spring isn't just about cleaning, it also signals the prelude to finals and the highly anticipated summer break.

So I think it's high time Tidy Thursday had a student edition.

What better way to kick it off than to start with a how-to-be-organized focused on school papers via the locker - binder - backpack!

How to be Organized :: Student Edition | Inspiration:

This week while I was at the Middle School for the Organizing Curriculum a 7th grader told me "I wish you still worked with us! I'm one of the organized ones & my locker is a disaster!"

She was right, she was one of my organized students. So much so that I considered her for a mentor program we're still formulating.

So if she is struggling, can you imagine how the rest of the student body must be feeling?

It struck me, after I gave her some ideas, that many volunteers & parents could be advocating the same concepts.

How to be Organized :: Student Edition | Strategy:

Whether a student is inately organized or needs to tap into a more creative side for solutions there are a few key things they can be doing each month or quarter.

10 minutes

A locker / backpack / binder clean out once a month for 10 minutes can go a long way.

What I told my 7th grader to do:

bring a duffel bag on a Friday

scoop your entire school life {read: locker} into it

take it home for the weekend

bring back what you need on Monday

How to be Organized :: Student Edition | What it looks like:

Weekend Task ...

with the school life pile

purge the trash

recycle expired items {ex: last semester's math test}

put active items in their appropriate locations {yes, this is filing}

tweak any systems not working

load the bag back up & restock the locker first thing Monday morning

How to be Organized :: Student Edition | Why:

After spending the last 5+ years with middle school students there are many things I've seen that cause the clutter. None more relevant than the lack of time allowed for students to take care of their "stuff".

I know, I know. Teachers are already pushed hard enough with curriculums. Administrators are already pushed hard enough to stretch their minimal budgets.

I hear you.

I walk in your hallways.

What makes my 6th grade students different by high school that other students miss out on?

How to carve time into their busy schedules for a bit of streamlining, decluttering and system tweaking.

So how can a volunteer lend a helping hand?

Offer to supervise a hallway once a week/month while students trickle in and go through their "stuff".

Most importantly :: don't judge.

It doesn't matter if the kid looks like a "Messy Marvin" or "Linus", in your eyes, what is important to understand is everyone is born with organizational skills - they just don't look the same.

My definition of Organized:

If they can find what they're looking for when they need it, then they are organized.

Acceptance of who they are breeds an exploration of what else they can accomplish.

I've seen first hand a student that was "scattered" go from a struggling student to a talented artist. Middle school students are having a hard enough time with the hormones, new format for learning and identity crisis. If they feel like they're being judged on their ability to locate homework too it can leave little room to breathe.

As always, if you are a volunteer that wants to learn more about how to incorporate the Organizing Curriculum into your district's year-of-transition from elementary level to middle school level leave me a comment below.